Happy New Year, Indeed!

Oilers 1: Islanders 4

Well, things couldn't have gone smoother on the day the Islanders inducted Ken Morrow into their Hall of Fame.

The legendary Team USA and Isles blueliner was given a spot on the Hall of Fame banner just before puck drop, and the current Isles team responded in spectacular fashion, defeating the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 at the Coliseum.

The Isles jumped out to an early lead in the first, taking advantage of a roughing call on Ben Eager and scoring on the power play. John Tavares was able to grab a dribbling puck after PA Parenteau lost control of it, putting it past an already-committed Devan Dubnyk. After that came two reviewed goals- one a call in the Oilers' favor, one against the Isles. The first was a goal by Sam Gagner ruled good after video showed that Evgeni Nabokov's own man, Mark Streit, had initiated contact with the goalie. The other was a no-goal call on Matt Moulson, ruled down because of a "distinct kicking motion" (Moulson had angled his skate just prior to the puck striking it).

Moulson would find justice, however, and on an incredible play by his linemate. With two Oilers drawn to him, Tavares executed a beautiful spin-o-rama move and passed right to Moulson, who put it past Dubnyk. The goal was Matt's 17th of the year, keeping him firmly on pace to score 30 or more by the end of this season. After calling Moulson to score the next one on my personal Twitter, I couldn't believe I was right- most of the time, I'm not. ;)

The rest of the scoring happened in the first five minutes of the second period. Eager was bound and determined to have Martin fight with him, and once more he got a roughing penalty- and for the second time, the Isles' power play capitalized, this time on the hands of PA Parenteau. Shortly after that, Martin himself scored to make it 4-1, giving himself some "poetic justice", in the words of Howie Rose. After that, Eager would get an unsportsmanlike and a 10-minute misconduct, putting him away for much of the rest of that period. I'm sure he didn't mind, though- the look on his face after Martin's goal said it all.

Don't be misled, though- the Oilers put up a very good fight. They outshot the Islanders for much of the game, giving Nabokov plenty of work to do until the third period, when they just seemed to lose steam. Meanwhile, the Isles did good work on defense, and while Nabokov didn't need to be a huge hero, he did make some excellent saves to keep the Oilers from getting back into the game. Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins were all held point-less despite Hall's four shots, Eberle's two, and Nugent-Hopkins's four. Hall and RNH also hit at least one post apiece. If not for the posts, it would have been a much closer score.

But it is what it is, and overall the Islanders did extremely well, both to gain a lead and to hold off the big three scorers. They also had a slight scare when Andy Sutton blindsided Tavares with a late hit in the second period (not uncommon for the Oilers' blueliner, who's been suspended twice already this season); however, JT would return to the game and earn the Isles' first star. Moulson and Martin rounded out the top three, making this New Year's Eve an enjoyable one for them and for the rest of the team.

Happy New Year to them and to everyone else, Isles fan or no!

Until next time.

Notes: Travis Hamonic continues his development as a top defenseman, leading all Isles with 22:12 of TOI...Mark Streit, in contrast, got considerably less than he is used to, finishing with 19:55... Tim Wallace was extremely physical throughout, with at least three big hits... October 10 and 13 are the last times that the Isles have held the opposition to a goal or fewer in two straight games, but they've done it in their last two now, outscoring their opponents 7-2.

With an Early Game Comes... a Preview!

The Islanders face off against the Edmonton Oilers today, which is pretty fitting, since I can't seem to remember a single New Year's Eve they've had off. The good thing about this one, though, is that it's at 1:00 pm, which means the boys have plenty of time to kick back and pop some champagne before 2012 hits.

Now, on to this matchup. The Edmonton Oilers have the potential to be scary good someday, but their talent- Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins among them- like the Isles', is still a bit green. As such, the Oilers have been losing as of late, starting their seven-game road trip with a loss in Vancouver, and being beaten by Minnesota 4-3 just the other night.

The Islanders have won five straight against Edmonton on home ice, outscoring them by a 2:1 ratio, but that's no reason for us to get cocky. The Islanders need to put together a few wins now, for no better reason than to try and get back into the playoff hunt- not to mention, they need some of their swagger back. It was great watching them play around and joke with each other after Thursday's win, but now it's time to get back to business. Even though the Oilers are struggling, that's no reason to underestimate Eberle (five goals and three assists in six games) or Nugent-Hopkins, the NHL's leading rookie scorer with 35 points this season (five more than PA Parenteau, our team's leading scorer). Hall, meanwhile, has been a bit quiet, but did score two points in the Oilers' loss to the Wild (1G, 1A).

As for the Islanders, the key is simple: simplicity. The Moulson-Tavares-Okposo line looked wonderful Thursday night, and they have to bring the same energy and aggression that they brought against Calgary. Crash the net hard, early and often (that does create a LOT of our offense, to be honest), don't go for fancy passes and dipsy-doodles (unless you can), and stay out of the penalty box, if only to keep RNH off of the PP where he has 15 assists this season. Same formula, different team. Carry on.

Let's Go Islanders!!

P.S. Good thing this is an early game- I'll be in downtown Buffalo for the ball drop tonight! It's no Times Square, but it'll do to be SOMEWHERE. ;) Happy New Year, everyone!

Stats sources: islanders.nhl.com, oilers.nhl.com

Getting the Mojo Back? Well, A Line Switch Certainly Helped

Flames 1: Islanders 3

After being faced with the Islanders' third straight loss in regulation, head coach Jack Capuano knew he had to do something, and fast. He didn't demote anyone or sit anyone down. Instead, he made a couple of adjustments to his lines. And wouldn't you know it, they worked.

Kyle Okposo started on the top line with John Tavares and Matt Moulson tonight, and the impact he made was certainly noticed, as the Islanders rallied back to win against the Calgary Flames, 3-1, at Nassau Coliseum. The new top line combined for eleven shots and the game-winning goal, and everyone noticed the immediate chemistry between Okposo and Tavares.

At first, it looked as though this game was going to go horribly wrong. 1:11 into the first, Tom Kostopoulos threw one toward the net that deflected off of former Islander Tim Jackman and past Evgeni Nabokov for the 1-0 lead. Then later on, Lee Stempniak blasted Kyle Okposo with a shoulder-to-head hit, and in the ensuing line brawl, Chris Butler seemed to commit a "third man in" penalty on Matt Moulson, yet somehow, the Flames emerged with a power play thanks to a four-minute call on Moulson. Screwy stuff, and I don't know how in the world to explain it, so don't ask me. Thankfully, Okposo only had a cut on the nose and nothing worse, but with a player who has a concussion history (even a short one), you don't want to take your chances. Then again, the refs were just awful in this game when they chose to blow their whistles (which wasn't often, save for one more call on Michael Grabner for "high-sticking"). Nabokov also had to come up with some bailout saves after Andrew MacDonald and Milan Jurcina made some questionable moves that led to odd-man rushes for the Flames.

In the second period, though, the Islanders tied it up. PA Parenteau fed a wide-open MacDonald from behind the net for the tying goal at 3:04 of the second period, giving A-Mac his third goal of the season (all against Western Conference teams, go figure). From there on out, the Islanders were rolling, throwing all that they could at Miikka Kiprusoff (who, to his credit, handled the pressure admirably). Kipper would stop 31 of 33 before the night ended.

Of course, no one can blame him for the game winner. John Tavares came through with a beautiful individual effort, driving around Chris Butler and across the slot, tucking it around the right pad of a sprawling Kiprusoff for the tiebreaker. It was a combination of JT's incredible work and some not-great choices by the Calgary defense that led to that goal, and some key shut-down defense by the Islanders to ensure that the Flames never got close no matter how hard they tried. Brian Rolston gave the Islanders the insurance goal with 43 seconds to go, sealing a much-needed win for the Islanders (who are now 13-1-7 in their last 21 games against Western Conference teams, a stat that I would love to transfer to the Eastern Conference). Overall, this was a solid 60-minute effort by a team that has gone through some tough losses and tougher practices lately, and is still attempting to find some sort of groove. They haven't gotten many breaks, what with injuries and phantom calls, but they're not focusing on that, instead electing to work hard with what they have, and to try and build momentum.

Don't have much more to say, other than that I loved this win and I hope to see more just like it.

Until next time.

Notes: Give some credit to PA Parenteau, also- he had two assists today, and now leads the team in points with 30... Nabokov made 29 saves on 30 shots, shaking off his early gaffe admirably... Attendance was just under 15,000, but I had the pleasure of hearing some loud cheering as the game went on, including one guy all by himself screaming "LET'S GO, ISLANDERS!" You're incredible, guy. ... Travis Hamonic also had a solid game, finishing with 21:39 TOI, 2 shots and a +3 rating... Islanders prospect alert! Ryan Strome is on fire for Team Canada in the World Junior Championships. He leads the tournament in scoring with three goals and four assists in two games so far. Of course, he was tearing up the ice with the Niagara IceDogs as well before the WJC started... can't wait to see him on the ice for the Islanders.

Offense... Do We Have It?

Islanders 0: Rangers 3

Nothing is more frustrating than knowing you have a decent core of offensive producers and seeing every single member of that core fail to produce, particularly against a division rival.

That's how I feel right now, to be honest. In between dealing with a fuzzy Gamecenter Live, having to explain that no, I'm not watching MSG Plus 2 because I live in Buffalo ("WHAT?!"), and trying to ignore people snarking about my favorite player, I was watching the Islanders short-circuit against the Rangers at MSG for the second time in four nights. Not one Islander recorded a point or even came close to it, save for a couple of rushes early on- and forget about the anemic power play, which failed to record a single shot in its first two attempts.

Some highlights:

• Micheal Haley was given an instigator penalty and a misconduct for beating on Stu Bickel early in the game (and, in true Islander fashion, would not return for the rest of the night due to a hand injury. Sigh.)
• Dan Girardi was given a kneeing penalty after colliding with John Tavares, and thankfully this one was not called a "dive" by JT like it was against the Leafs on Saturday.
• I yelled at a lot of different Rangers.
• Evgeni Nabokov got another start, and he did everything he possibly could in net tonight, making 28 saves, including some beauties in the first period. His counterpart for the Rangers, Henrik Lundqvist, however, was perfect, and to add to his own 28 saves, the defensive play of the skaters in front of him was superb.
• Save for the fight early on, this was not a very nasty game. It started out much like a game of chess, to be honest, with the two teams feeling each other out and figuring out how best to play defense against each other. Perhaps that was what hurt the Islanders' chances of winning- though, admittedly, the defense had its usual issues.
• Travis Hamonic led the team in TOI with 24:57, while Matt Moulson led the forwards with 20:36- and Michael Grabner was benched for the last 8:30 of the second period, a definite message being sent to him from the coaching staff. Indeed, he hasn't been sparkling (15 points and a -11 on the season to date), but I can think of a few guys who deserve to benched ahead of him (starting with Marty Reasoner... just saying).
• Jack Capuano pulled Nabokov with over three minutes remaining in the third, which lead to the game-sealer empty net goal by Marian Gaborik- and once again, I wonder what he's thinking. Clearly, pulling the goalie is not working, and neither are any of the other tactics he has employed this season to try and galvanize his team. Time to get tougher and/or change something around, Cappy, because this team is like Internet Explorer: not responding. If need be, bench someone, even your captain (whose fault this game was not, by the way- just making an example). You're not here to be a friend. Be a coach. Get these guys to start winning again.
• On the Rangers' side, Michael Del Zotto and Carl Hagelin were the wonder duo tonight, scoring the Rangers' first two goals (Del Zotto with the start, Hagelin with the finish). Del Zotto was a +3 to finish the night, while Hagelin was a +2.

Not much more to be said, except.... WAKE IT UP, BOYS.

Until next time.

Wearing Your Jersey in a Foreign Land, Part Two.

My co-worker hates the Islanders.

Why? I don't know. Nor does he.

"I don't know anyone on that team other than DiPietro," he says. (He's a Jhonas Enroth fan, and an ice/street/roller hockey goalie.)

He even carved "Islanders Suck" into a piece of styrofoam as we were doing truck earlier today, to which I just raised an eyebrow.

Methinks I have a troll on my hands.

My last day there, I'm going to wear an Isles shersey to work just to mess with him.

Leafs Get Win... Okay, Maybe the Refs Helped Out a Bit.

Maple Leafs 5: Islanders 3

If I were Doug Weight, I'd be ticked off, too.

The assistant coach had all manner of vitriol to spew in the on-ice official's direction after a call regarding John Tavares. JT had been cross-checked in the head by Toronto's Joffrey Lupul, when the refs decided Tavares had dived as well. Instead of a penalty, it was a 4-on-4 situation, which riled up Weight and sent the Isles' comeback into a downward spiral.

Of course, it hasn't been the first time that the refs have done this (ahem, San Jose?). But at least the first time, the Islanders managed to get at least one point.

All of that being said, there were questionable plays throughout this game on New York's behalf. From the first period, which I missed most of (and came home from work to find the Leafs already up 2-0) but heard of the horrors involved, to a couple of bad mistakes by Mark Streit and Frans Nielsen to give Joey Crabb a shorthanded goal, to the aforementioned ridiculous call and subsequent blowup by Weight... it just wasn't good. And the issue really is that the Islanders could have come back... maybe.

Let's be honest, the Isles put themselves into a hole in the first period, even with the pretty goal scored by Kyle Okposo with 4:15 left. Though they showed some good resilience with a Frans Nielsen power play goal 40 seconds into the second period, there were too many gaffes and missed opportunities, and James Reimer (bless his heart) allowed for many of those opportunities. After missing a few games with an injury, the Leafs goalie was bobbling more than a few glove saves and coughing up rebound after rebound, and yet the only thing that saved him (other than his skaters) was the fact that the Isles could not collect the rebound, or put it wide or high. John Tavares showed ultimate patience by finding the gap and shooting for it to cut the lead to 4-3 midway through the third period, which made me wonder if mayyyybe I was going to be wrong about the whole "we're just not solving Reimer tonight" concept... and then the call happened.

It all leads back to the call.

No, it really doesn't. It's just highly frustrating, and so is watching this team struggle, especially with so much promise. It doesn't show right now because yes, we're on the skids, and we've needed extra time to win lately, but it's there. It just needs to be found and brought back out to stay. Consistency would be wonderful (and so would a reliable defense- Mike Mottau was the surprise defensive star of tonight's game, which is saying something). I just hope Jack Capuano figures out what to do, other than laugh as his assistants go on tirades...

Until next time.

Meeting Number Three... Not a Charm

Islanders 2: Rangers 4

After the Islanders pulled within one for the second time in the match, John Mitchell capitalized on a questionable decision by Isles head coach Jack Capuano to seal the win for New York, 4-2.

Capuano had elected to pull Evgeni Nabokov with a minute and a half left, before the Islanders had even left the defensive zone, when the puck was turned over. With Nabokov completely out of position, the Rangers upped the tally easily, taking the wind completely out of the Isles' sails.

This was not an easy game to watch. The Rangers struck first, on a shot by Brandon Dubinsky resulting in his first goal in over a month (of course). It took until :18 into the second, on a rebound PA Parenteau cashed in on, to tie it, and then Marian Gaborik (league-leading 20th) scored right off of a faceoff win by Artem Anisimov, darting behind three Islanders to get it past Nabokov. Michael Del Zotto made it 3-1 after collecting a loose puck. Matt Moulson would be the only other Islander to score, continuing the trend of low offense that has hurt this team since the beginning of the season- and with plenty of offensive weapons (not the least of which is John Tavares, who hasn't scored since Dec. 13 in Montreal), it's hard to believe they have a second-worst 72 goals forced (only two goals better than L.A.). It also doesn't help that the power play, which did capitalize on two opportunities, still needs to work on a few things.

As for the rivalry... well, it came out in the third period. Newest member on the "Angie doesn't like you" list? Stu Bickel, who got into it with Matt Martin and then sucker punched Tim Wallace, earning himself a two-minute minor that turned into Moulson's goal. He joins Evander Kane, who had run Al Montoya in the Isles' previous game in Winnipeg, giving him a concussion (hence Nabokov's start). For his part, by the way, Nabokov made 21 saves, though the three goals he allowed had been on the Rangers' first 13 shots. Meanwhile, former Isle and current Rangers backup Martin Biron made 24 of 26 stops to secure the win, continuing his streak of excellence against the Islanders.

Sigh. Well, the good thing about this game is that there's no time to dwell. The Islanders return home to face the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have just defeated the Sabres tonight, 3-2. Toronto's been all over the board as far as I can tell, so who knows what we'll find tomorrow.

Until next time.